Fourth Year Part 1, 1994
Hermione wasn't one for sporting events, and she wasn't a huge fan of quidditch, but the Weasleys had an extra ticket for the Quidditch World Cup, and the festivities along with the match seemed like fun. It was an exciting atmosphere, and she found herself enjoying Ron and Harry's enthusiasm. Bulgaria's seeker looked rather dashing in the posters Ron kept pointing out to them, but he wasn't nearly as handsome as Mr. Malfoy, she thought.
The entire atmosphere was exhilarating, and Hermione was so thankful Mr. Weasley had invited her to come along. Events like this one were out of reach for most muggleborn students, which was terribly unfair when one stopped to consider how much culture and knowledge you could soak up just wandering around the festival booths before the match!
She, Harry, and the Weasleys were halfway up the stadium steps when she spotted the Malfoy family. They were rather formally dressed for a sporting event, but what really surprised Hermione was that Mrs. Malfoy had come along with her husband and son. She'd never once seen the willowy blonde at Hogwarts, not even for Draco's quidditch games. She guessed the gorgeous witch was not a fan of the sport because she currently had a rather unattractive look of disgust on her face. Mrs. Malfoy's pinched expression kept her from looking as beautiful as she did in the rare newspaper photo Hermione had seen of her.
She wasn't at all surprised when Harry and Ron got into an argument with Malfoy or when Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Weasley exchanged words. What was surprising though was that they were all in the same box together at the top of the stadium. The Malfoys were seated with the Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge and seemed to be doing their best to ignore the Weasleys. Hermione was thrilled to be able to observe them at close range.
Mrs. Malfoy still did not look pleased to be there. Hermione's initial impression of the witch was that she lived up to her namesake. The match had not yet started, but Mrs. Malfoy had already withdrawn a compact from her robes to check her already flawless hair and makeup. Was this the sort of witch wizards like Mr. Malfoy wanted? If so, Hermione knew she was woefully inadequate on all fronts. Her front teeth were too big. Her parents insisted that she could have braces when she was older, not seeming to understand just how awful it was to have an obvious physical feature others mocked. Her hair was a wild mess. Hermione had never given much thought to her hair before beyond regular shampooing and brushing, but if this was the standard of beauty she needed to attain, she was going to have start paying attention when Lavender and Parvati talked about hair charms and potions.
She pulled one of her curls straight, twisting the hair round her fingers as she watched the pre-match performance from Ireland's leprechaun mascots. Draco caught her staring at them and glared at her and mouthed the word "mudblood." She glared back and wanted to slap him. It was puzzling to her that she could loathe the younger Malfoy so much while finding herself so fascinated by his father.
Bulgaria's mascots them came onto the pitch, and Hermione was puzzled. Why were their mascots a bunch of almost inhumanly beautiful women? It was then that she realised that most of the males around her seemed to have gone barmy. Even Mr. Malfoy and Draco were leaning over the railing as if they were prepared to leap from the box to reach the silver-haired, pale-skinned beauties.
As she looked around in confusion, she met Mr. Weasley's face and noted that he alone among the wizards in their box seemed unaffected.
"Veela," he said, motioning to the women. "The allure attracts the opposite sex. Not unlike sirens."
"Really?" She was fascinated. Why had she not heard of veela before? "Why doesn't it affect you?"
He grinned and held up his left hand. She frowned, not understanding what he meant until she noticed the wedding ring.
"A veela's allure is no match for true love," he said proudly.
Well that was… incredibly sweet when applied to Arthur and Molly. But for the others...she looked again at the Malfoys with new eyes. Mr. Malfoy was clearly affected by the veela, even though his wife was seated beside him. They weren't truly in love with each other.
She couldn't help but wonder what feelings Mr. Malfoy did have for the beautiful witch beside him. If someone that beautiful couldn't hold his attention, who could? What sort of witch could he truly love?
~oOo~
Hermione's delight at being at the World Cup soured that night when chaos erupted at the campsite. As she fled for safety with Harry and Ron, caught up in a panicked crowd, she heard the shouts of others, saying that Death Eaters had come to the World Cup, that Death Eaters were torturing the muggles who lived nearby.
The Death Eaters were supposed to gone, all arrested or killed, save for the few who were found not guilty by the Wizengamot. Was this someone's idea of a sick joke? A group of young wizards trying to stir up trouble perhaps?
Someone bumped into her from behind, and Hermione fell to the ground, catching herself on her hands and knees. When she looked up again only a second later, she'd lost Harry and Ron in the melee. She was knocked down twice more before struggling to her feet and escaping the flow of the crowd for what she hoped was the safety of the woods.
She crawled through thick underbrush, branches tearing at her hair and catching on her clothes, as she tried to move in the general direction her friends had headed. She finally came to a break in the woods near another edge of the campsite. She thought she was close to the entrance, but it was much darker than she remembered. She was debating the wisdom of casting a lumos to help her see when she stumbled into another person.
She was knocked to the ground again, this time falling backward and landing hard on her bum. The dark-robed figure turned around, wand drawn, and she realised that in her haste to escape the crowd, she'd unwittingly bumped into what could only be a Death Eater. His entire face was obscured by a terrifying silver and black mask that managed to make his face look like an ornate skull with a sinister frown. He was otherwise covered from head to toe in black hooded robes.
In her short life she'd faced down a cerebus, devil's snare, life-sized destructive wizard's chess pieces, a basilisk, a boggart, an escaped prisoner, a werewolf, and a host of dementors. The wizard before her was easily one of the most frightening things she'd ever seen, and she was facing him alone.
His wand was pointed at her, she could tell that much even in the dark, but he had not said anything. Her own wand was tucked away in her pocket, and she knew he could kill her before she could even get her wand in hand. He moved toward her slowly until he was standing over her. It was too dark to see his eyes, but she knew he was looking at her.
Oh God. This was it. This was the moment she was going to die, and there was nothing she could do about it.
She would never be able to fully understand or explain what happened next. Instead of firing a curse at her, the Death Eater pointed off to the left. She could barely hear his hissed words over the roar of the nearby panicked crowd.
"This is no place for children, little witch. Go. That way."
He was… he was letting her go. A Death Eater was just letting her leave. Had he not realised she was muggleborn? Or had he noticed her young age? She'd always been petite for her age and was frequently mistaken for a younger child.
Her flight instinct kicked in then, and she scrambled to her feet and darted as quickly as she could back into the woods, in the direction he'd gestured. He'd let her go. She wasn't going to die tonight.
That mask haunted her in her dreams for weeks following the quidditch World Cup. The swirls of silver around the eyes, the shape of the frown. It wasn't a sight she'd soon forget.
It would be almost two more years before she'd see that mask again. Nearly two long years before she'd learn that the masked Death Eater that day at the edge of the woods was Lucius Malfoy.
~oOo~
Thank you again for reading my little story and sharing your thoughts and feedback! To those who are reading Lumione for the first time (waves hello to her Dramione writer friends), welcome to the dark side. We've got a long way to go with this story, and I'm so happy you're along for the ride.